It was tipped to be the David to Sony and Nintendo's Goliath, but the company behind the Gizmondo handheld console looked to be in financial trouble following poor sales in the UK and America.

Latest accounts for Gizmondo Europe reveal that the company racked up £49 million of losses during 2004, when turnover totalled just £401,843 according to a report in the London Evening Standard newspaper.

The paper goes on to say that the firm has recorded a warning from its accountants, dated 10 November 2005, that its assumption of the company remaining a going concern “depends on the continued support of the company's parent through the provision of adequate loan facilities”.

Tiger Telematics - the parent company - launched the handheld console in the UK in March last year with an American launch following 6 months later.

Since the launch, commentators have questioned the success of the handheld console against the two main players in the market Sony and Nintendo.

Tiger Telematics, seems to be in just as bad a state as Gizmondo Europe. According to the paper, regulatory filings show Tiger's net loss in nine month's trading last year was $264.6 million, taking total losses to $382.5 million since the start of 2003.

>> Gizmondo - Official website of Gizmondo